Customer Reviews

The Greatest Spiritual Secret of the Century

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The story Spiritual Secret's exciting plot kept me up, reading, until two in the morning. It's spiritual message has me determined to persuade my kids to read it. My oldest has already agreed.

Spiritual Secret is a precious gift. Thom Hartmann says, "Nothing has meaning, save the meaning you give it. What you call your culture is nothing but the stories you all decide to agree are true, whether or not they are."

So Thom has created a story which helps our culture. He creates new meaning with a clear vision-- one based on what Jesus and Moses and Buddha and Mohammed taught, rather than the institutional religious teachings which, over time, became distorted and twisted by greed, ego and the desire for power.

This story offers us us a new story to embrace as our spiritual reality, one closer to the bone, with truths which, though always available to us, shout out through his words, with clarity and soul.

While it has many incredibly inportant messages, it reads like a cross between an action thriller and one of Daniel Quinn's idea adventures, like Ishmael.

Beware. Reading this book will permanently change the way you see your life and the world

I read this wonderful book in one session while sitting in the sun during a trip to the Alps. The combination of crisp mountain air, majestic scenery and the beautiful message of Thom's novel gave me a tremedous feeling of joy and hope.

For Thom is one of those rare authors who can deliver powerful and universal truths within the format of a fast-moving and entertaining novel.

Through the character of Paul we are able to experience the damaging effects of the Western lifestyle; and then undertake an exciting journey of awareness, learning and change towards a more spirtual and rewarding way of life.

"The Greatest Spiritual Secret of the Century" develops the themes of Thom's two other superb books "The Prophets Way" and "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight", and I would recommend all three.

Indeed I have a library of over 500 "mind,body and spirit" books and Thom is one of the most congruent, enlightenting and relevant authors in this field

Thom Hartmann is a psychotherapist and internationally known speaker. He's written numerous books and short stories. The Greatest Spiritual Secret of the Century is his first novel, and in it he takes both his characters and the reader on a transforming journey.

Paul Abler is an ordinary person, living an ordinary life filled job stress, past-due rent, and a girlfriend who jilts him. Then one day, he throws himself in front of an oncoming car, in a successful attempt to save a little girl who had darted in front of it. He himself is saved from serious injury by an extraordinary man named Noah.

Noah, who is a shape shifter and time traveler, takes Paul on a journey where he receives his first lessons in the School of Wisdom.

Paul later is approached by a street person named Jim, who takes him beneath the city streets, where he meets a group of homeless people led by Joshua. But like Noah, his new acquaintances are more than they first appear to be. Paul continues to have fantastic adventures and experiences, all the while increasing his knowledge of how things truly are. When he learns the greatest spiritual secret, he knows that he can never revert to being the person he had been.

A modern-day parable, The Greatest Spiritual Secret of the Century, is written in "the story-telling tradition of Og Mandino and Richard Bach. . .Paul's voyage is a journey that all of us would like to take, and provides answers each of us had hoped to find."

This book is a great, fast-moving story with a deep, spiritual theme. Even more amazing for me was the depth of the research the author put into it. The scenes describing ancient Sumeria and Uruk and the gods of that time and the nature of the temples (from the statuary to the costumes to the traditions) are impeccably accurate. On digging through the book carefully, I find that all of the words attributed to the female deity he meets in space are the (few) actual words put in a female "voice of God" in the Bible (mostly Song of Songs, but other places, too), and all the words of Joshua are verbatim from the Gospel of Thomas. It's an amazing dip into the esoteric history of the Jewish/Christian tradition...and its predecessors...as well as a fun read. Just the info on mysticism is worth the price of the book. Enjoy!

I was indeed curious to read Thom Hartmann's first novel. I am a great fan of his non-fiction, particularly LAST HOURS OF ANCIENT SUNLIGHT and PROPHET'S WAY. But facility in one genre of writing does not necessarily guarantee quality in another, and I have been disappointed before when writers attempt the crossover from non-fiction to fiction. But the transition here has been a grand success. Good writing, exciting story, and wonderful spiritual truths are all presented in a way that address the pervasive malaise of our society today and what can be done about it. Mr. Hartmann has done his research and does not hesitate to present the truly radical teachings of the mystical path. So do not be put off by the title. This book is a real gem and I am buying it for all my friends.

Let's face facts - this book is controversial. You can see it by the extreme polarity between the negative reviews from people who essentially state that they never bothered to finish reading the book, and the glowing positive reviews of those who read it to the end.

The most controversial part of this book is probably found in Thom's characterization of the reinvention of Christianity by the Roman Empire around 300 AD. In this, he very much takes the position held by Jesus in his

teachings, which are in many cases in opposition to the later teachings of St. Paul...and certainly in opposition to those of the Catholic Church and most modern-day evangelical churches. Thus, modern "lifestyle Christians" who pray for wealth and approve of the dominator/exploitative social order extant in the modern world will be offended by this book. If they're slick, rather than dealing with that issue, they'll try to dissuade potential readers by making vague comments that imply the book is poorly written or that the author is a cynic.

Yet the book is brilliantly well written, fast-paced, and startling informative. As you can learn by reading the author's previous book, The Prophet's Way, he has not only lived among the homeless, he has done so on four continents over the past twenty years. His insights into the human condition are deep and meaningful, and his scholarship with regard to early Christianity concurs with that of Funk ("Honest To Jesus") and other contemporary (albeit controversial) modern students of the era.

"Secret" may well be one of the most important books of this year or this decade, in that it spares neither lifestyle Christianity nor the "new age movement" when going back to the essential roots of Judaism and the early Jesus movement - those roots being the mystical experience. In that, this book is rich, meaningful, and transformational. If you don't mind your preconceptions being challenged, read it soon!

I would like to say that all the books that Thom has written are wonderful and always in the spirit of assisting others to find that place within them that is peace and harmony. This book is terrific. I trust that Thom will continue to write fiction and non-fiction. He has much to give to all who will listen. I really encourage everyone to read Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight.

It's always refreshing to see a positive and action-minded message set forth by a renowned nationally syndicated talk show host and author of many many books.

It's a beautiful book on finding your path in life - does involve some non-denominational christianity and in fact teaches us to understand the messages that come along in our lives - as well as how to bring about some meaning in our otherwise workcentric universe.

I enjoyed it and found it to be a different type of book than what I'm used to seeing. Very refreshing.

Though Thom Hartmann is Christian and I am Jewish, this book rings true for me. It explores universal truths while telling a solid story that keeps you reading through, not wanting to take a break to work or sleep.

It seems that there is a movement towards describing a new theology-- a vision of faith, of spirituality which transcends the traditional religions, while still respecting them. This book does a nice job of doing that. It doesn't tolerate the BS-- the modifications to the original teachings-- which organized religion has encumbered the big ones with, which is refreshing and in some cases, pleasantly surprising.

I read a lot of non-fiction, (recently Ken Wilber's Marriage of Sense and Soul, Robert Thurman's Inner Revolution, Joseph Campbell's Hero with a thousand Faces, Gary Schwartz's Living Energy Universe) so it is fun to take a break with an entertaining, yet, at the same time visionary, illuminating and fun to read STORY.

I expect to be giving a lot of copies of this book away as gifts-- certainly one to my daughter.

It's nice to find an author who does a good job with both non-fiction and fiction. I'm looking forward to his next book, whatever it is.

A deviation from his must-read, non-fiction titles `The Prophet's Way' and `Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight', Thom Hartmann's first fictional work is quite simply another great success. The tale of an out of work New York journalist and the mystical spiritual journey he finds himself engaged in when he risks his life to save that of a little girl, both entertains and enlightens. The Greatest Spiritual Secret is simple yet beautiful and once again the wisdom and spiritual truths shine from the pages. Another must-read from Mr Hartmann.